The QuickBooks product line includes several solutions to support different business needs, such as QuickBooks Online, QuickBooks Desktop, QuickBooks Payroll, and QuickBooks Time. Developed by Intuit, QuickBooks is an accounting software whose products provide desktop and online accounting applications as well as cloud-based ones which can process bills and business payments.

QuickBooks Self-Employed is ideal for freelancers, real estate agents, and independent contractors, like Uber and Lyft drivers. Similar to QuickBooks Online, it’s a cloud-based product that can be accessed with your secure login from any computer with an internet connection. QuickBooks Pro will work well for most small businesses that don’t manufacture products and prefer a desktop solution. As you sell inventory, QuickBooks will allocate a portion of your inventory to the cost of goods sold automatically, which is an expense account that reduces your income.

Accounts Payable

One of the most common complaints about QuickBooks Desktop is its steep learning curve. Accountants often find QuickBooks Pro and Premier to be more traditional, but you don’t have to be an accountant or professional bookkeeper to learn QuickBooks Online. Granted, you don’t have to be an accountant to learn QuickBooks Desktop either, but if you are new to accounting, you will need a lot of time to learn the program.

Conversely, QuickBooks Online has everything a small business might need. QuickBooks Online is a standalone, cloud-based product that is limited strictly to accounting. QuickBooks Enterprise has some inventory management functionality, but it’s fairly limited overall and relies on third-party integrations for advanced features. Detailed reporting may require exporting spreadsheets and viewing data in and across multiple platforms.

NetSuite vs. QuickBooksWhy You Should Make the Switch

Inter-company transactions are manual at best; the opportunity for errors is abundant. Perhaps the most important thing QuickBooks can do for your small business is to simplify tax time. By far, the largest headache in preparing a tax return is compiling your income and expenses.

I understand that Event Host, in its sole discretion, may make networking chat (“Chat”) functionality available from the Event platform. Such Chat functionality allows registered attendees to create and display a profile in the Event directory and to chat with an attendee and/or group during the Event. Chat is optional and it is the attendee’s choice to use and/or accept invitations sent by Event attendees.

Best Invoicing Software for Small Businesses

This adds more transparency through consolidated invoicing, automated rating processes and support of multiple pricing models to capture setup fees, license counts and variable consumption in one step. As your company grows and accounting becomes more complex, you’ll find that entry-level accounting software has clear limits. Handling mature business challenges using spreadsheets and clusters of disparate applications just doesn’t work—which is why companies often upgrade from QuickBooks to NetSuite.

You can download the https://www.wave-accounting.net/ Online mobile app from the Google Play Store or Apple App Store. QuickBooks Online has a cheaper monthly cost and is more affordable if you have a lot of employees who will be using the software. QuickBooks Desktop Pro may be cheaper if you do not need additional users or add-ons such as payroll.

Print Financial Statements for Your Business

Almost all cloud-based accounting solutions have a dashboard showing an overview of account balances, income and expense totals and charts, and tasks that need to be done. They also contain links to related activities, such as invoice creation and account maintenance. My background is accounting and sometimes I get the impression that Quickbooks has tried to dumb the software down too much, which makes it harder for me to deal with anything outside the box.

With QuickBooks Desktop, users receive some of the most developed accounting tools on the market. The software offers comprehensive features, unique touches , industry-specific versions of the software, and the potential to be more secure.

Ratings and Reviews

The navigation system that QuickBooks Online Plus employs rarely—if ever—causes confusion. Once you click on a link in the navigation bar, you usually find another series of navigation links that divide that area’s functions into subsets of tools and data. The first one is a sales overview that displays deposit and invoice charts and miscellaneous links to additional setup tasks, as well as a few shortcuts to transaction screens. While QuickBooks Online is designed for non-accountants, new users will likely have questions. Online help files have improved over the last year, but they’re still not as good as Xero’s, for example. Some questions take you directly to content created by Intuit employees, and other times you’re routed to the community Q&A section or to an answer that pertains to the desktop version of QuickBooks. For $80 per month, the Plus plan adds the ability to track inventory and project profitability.

• I understand that Event Host, in its sole discretion, may make networking chat (“Chat”) functionality available from the Event platform.
• Almost all cloud-based accounting solutions have a dashboard showing an overview of account balances, income and expense totals and charts, and tasks that need to be done.
• It comes in a variety of editions and has web-based and desktop programs.
• You don’t need anything saved on your computer, and there are no disks to load.
• If you’re a new user, you may be eligible for a promotion that Intuit runs, which gives you 50 percent off these prices for three months.
• Detailed reporting may require exporting spreadsheets and viewing data in and across multiple platforms.

Reports are readily available and clear to interpret and automatically updated. Most all Tax professionals are familiar with the software so your CPA or tax preparer can tell you exactly what quickbooks documents they need when it’s tax time. There is also a robust online community that will help if you run into issues. With Xero’s Early plan, you can send/approve only 20 quotes and invoices and enter five bills. Additionally, Xero includes time tracking only in the highest-level plan — the Established plan ($65 per month). Finally, although Xero offers 24/7 online support, it does not provide phone-based customer service. FreshBooks is a strong option for freelancers and independent contractors, as well as self-employed professionals on the go.